BC Stroke Strategy

Stroke is the third leading cause of death in BC, and a leading cause of acquired long-term disability in adults.

In 2008/09, 4,526 patients in BC experienced a stroke severe enough to require hospitalization. More than a third of these patients died within one year.

Although stroke is a highly preventable and treatable disease, care in BC is not well organized. In 2005, the Heart and Stroke Foundation of BC & Yukon developed the BC Stroke Strategy to study, evaluate and make recommendations to improve stroke care in these four areas of focus:

• Awareness, Primary and Secondary Prevention
• Emergency and Acute Care
• Rehabilitation and Community Reintegration
• Evaluation

Funded by the provincial government, the BC Stroke Strategy has identified significant gaps in stroke care within the health care system, implemented and evaluated prototypes, and developed key recommendations to close those gaps. In December 2010, the BC Stroke Strategy tabled the Provincial Stroke Action Plan with the BC Ministry of Health Services and regional Health Authorities for decision around governance, funding and implementation.

If fully implemented, the Provincial Stroke Action Plan could reduce the impact of stroke in BC and improve outcomes for patients who suffer a stroke. This would save lives, improve the quality of life for survivors, and result in direct care cost avoidance of approximately $42 million a year to the health care system.